Brothers at Arms: American Independence and the Men of France and Spain Who Saved It

Pulitzer Prize Finalist in HistoryWinner of theJournal of the American Revolution2016 Book of the Year AwardAt the time the first shots were fired at Lexington and Concord the American colonists had little chance, if any, of militarily defeating the British. The nascent American nation had no navy, little in the way of artillery, and a militia bereft even of gunpowder. In his detailed accounts Larrie Ferreiro shows that without the extensive military and financial support of the French and Spanish, the American cause would never have succeeded.Ferreiro adds to the historical records the names of French and Spanish diplomats, merchants, soldiers, and sailors whose contribution is at last given recognition. Instead of viewing the American Revolution in isolation,Brothers at Armsreveals the birth of the American nation as the centerpiece of an international coalition fighting against a common enemy.